Search form

What we do

The Commission accepted for filing claims of individuals, corporations and Governments, submitted by Governments and international organizations.

The Commission received approximately 2.69 million claims seeking a total of approximately US$352.5 billion in compensation, of which 1.5 million were awarded a total of US$52.4 billion. Nearly one hundred Governments submitted claims for their nationals, corporations and/or themselves. Thirteen offices of three international organizations, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), also submitted claims for individuals who were not in a position to have their claims filed by Governments.

The payment of claims by the Commission had several facets to it. The Compensation Fund was established with the specific function of receiving funds from the Government of Iraq, which would in turn be used to settle claims. Other elements like the payment mechanisms are detailed in this section, as is the distribution of awards and summaries of payments.

More than 700 oil wells were set on fire as the Iraqi forces retreated from Kuwait at the end of the 1990 Gulf conflict, with an estimated 6 million barrels of oil per day burning for nearly ten months. Additionally, the construction of oil trenches; the piping of oil into the waters of the Persian Gulf; the laying of ordnance; the military mobilization of the Allied Forces; the movement of refugees; and even the extinguishing of the oil fires itself caused environmental damage throughout the region.